Clayton, N.C. — A popular Clayton restaurant will reopen Wednesday, seven months after a small plane slammed into the building.

McCall's BBQ and Seafood, at 10365 U.S. Highway 70 West, was heavily damaged on Sept. 21 when a single-engine 1947 North American Navion crashed into the front of the restaurant.

The pilot of the plane, Garry Stephen Reid, of Galivants Ferry, S.C., was killed. No one else was injured in the crash, which occurred about an hour before McCall's was scheduled to open for lunch.

"It could have been so much worse," co-owner Worth Westbrook said. "Everything that happened, we could replace those things. If some of our staff had gotten hurt, some of our customers had gotten hurt, we would never have recovered from that."

The owners rebuilt McCall's in recent months to include a revamped dining area and planned to host a "First Responders Friends and Family Night" Tuesday before officially reopening for lunch Wednesday at 11 a.m.

"Well, we're just really excited to be back," Westbrook said.

The National Transportation Safety Board has not yet determined the cause of the crash.

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TravisedApr 22, 2008

Seven months and no release yet from the NTSB? It can take up to a year in MOST CASES that is considered long. Even after the report it can be reopened up til a year later. I was wondering if it was an engine out or pilot error. Must be very hard to tell if it is taking this long. Usually there is a clear indication one way or another (bad seals, bad lines, poor repairs are visible, annuals were skipped). Very very interesting.